Detailed discussion on the meanings and significance of the hadith about creation on weekdays reported in Sahih Muslim. The paper concludes that the hadith neither contradicts Qur'an nor explains the Six-yawm creation account. Moreover, it does not clash with any of the established modern scientific findings. And that the purpose of the hadith is simply to give a lesson in beliefs about the Almighty.

1. Introduction

In view of Muslim criticism on
the Creation narrative given in the first chapter of Genesis and solid explanation
of “yawm” meaning an unspecified period of time (possibly even an epoch)[1] in Qur’anic account of the
same, the missionary critics of Islam have felt the pressure somehow to find
new ways to attack the Islamic sources on similar lines.

It was narrated that Abu Hurairah said:
"The Messenger of Allah took my hand and said: 'Allah, (Glorified and
Exalted is He,) created the earth on Saturday, and over it He created the
mountains on Sunday. He created the trees on Monday, He created things
entailing labor on Tuesday, He created light on Wednesday, He scattered the
animals in it on Thursday, and He created Adam, peace be upon him, after'Asron Friday, the last of creation in the last hour of Friday, between'Asr and nightfall."[2]

It is argued by the missionaries
that this hadith defines the “yawm” in the Islamic accounts of Creation as a
week day and therefore puts to question the explanation offered by Muslim apologists.
Moreover, they say, it raises scientific question of the nature Muslims raise
regarding the Biblical account given in the Book of Genesis i.e. how the trees
existed before the creation of light since photosynthesis is imperative for all
life in the botanic kingdom.

Another important aspect of this
hadith is that even though it is included in Sahih Muslim some scholars have
put its authenticity to question. Besides the objections on its narrative
authority, it is held that it contradicts the Qur’anic declaration that the
heavens and the earth were created in six days and that earth itself was
created in four days. This is important because the general educated
presumption is that the hadith narrations in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim are
all reliable. Hadith rejecters (of both the blunt and the minced kind) and
modernists tend to use this report as an inductive argument against the
reliability of reports based on the study of chain of authorities (isnad).
Though in principle, questioning this hadith has to have no real fallout on the
generally agreed notion of the authenticity of Muslim’s narrations there is
danger of the ignorant making a rant with this. In this paper, however, we
shall dwell on the understanding of the actual content (matn) of the
hadith, and shall suffice with merely the overview of the criticism on its
chain of narrators (isnad).

2. Discussion on chain of
narrators (isnad)

Some scholars have raised
questions about its chain of narrators (isnad) and argued that the
hadith involves some mistake or inadvertence on the part of some narrator.
Those who have raised such questions include al-Bukhari[3], ‘Ali bin al-Madini[4], Ibn Kathir[5], Ibn Taymiyyah[6], Ibn al-Qayyim[7] and others. At the same
time there are scholars who have accepted the hadith as authentic. They are Muslim
bin Hajjaj[8], Ibn Hibban[9], Ibn al-Anbari[10], Ibn al-Jawzi[11], Abu Hayyan al-Andalusi[12], ash-Shawkani[13], al-Muallimi[14], Ahmad Shakir[15], al-Albani[16] and al-Heveni.[17]

Those who said its chain of
narrators has problems said it is a narration of Ka’b al-Ahbar. The first to
say this was al-Bukhari who said:

وقال بعضهم: عن أبي هريرة عن كعب، وهو أصح

“And some have said: ‘(It is
reported from) Abu Huraira (who) related from Ka’b.’ And this is more
authentic.”[18]

However, al-Albani rejected this
saying it is a claim without evidence and the “some” who said this are not
known.[19]

Nevertheless, it is evident that
scholars who questioned this hadith did so not merely on the account of its
contents. In fact they had reservations on its chain of authorities (isnad)
as well. While a critical review of the discussion on its isnad is out
of the scope of the present study, in the following lines we shall dwell on its
subject matter (matn).

3. Why the hadith cannot be
from Israeliyat (Judeo-Christian traditions)?

It is, however, highly improbable
to dub this narration as one of Israeliyat because it counts Saturday among the
days of creation which plainly contradicts the Jewish idea of Sabbath.

For this reason it is difficult
to ascribe this to Ka’b al-Ahbar because his reports do take into consideration
the Sabbath. At-Tabari narrates:

عن كعب، قال: بدأ
الله خلق السموات والأرض يوم الأحد والاثنين

Ka’b said: “Allah started the creation
with the heavens and the Earth on Sunday and Monday.”[20]

Moreover, another Jewish convert Abdullah bin Salam has reported
the same.[21]
Their accounts mention the beginning of creation on Sunday and ending on
Friday. This is because they came from Jewish background and related things
from their knowledge of that tradition.

This is important to observe since the chain of the
narrators is not such that the hadith may be overlooked and understood as
fabrication or altogether baseless. Even the scholars who criticized it said it
involves some mistake or inadvertence and therefore it was suggested that it
perhaps originally came from Ka’b. But here we see that the subject matter is
such that we cannot count it as one of Israeliyat reported by Ka’b.[22]

This creation of different
objects on weekdays mentioned in this hadith does not explain the Qur’anic
account of creation of the heavens and the Earth in Six Days (al-ayyam
as-sitta). This is established plainly through a version of the hadith with
an-Nasa’i that
first mentions the creation of the heavens and the Earth in six “ayyam”
(unspecified spans of time) before the mention of creation of different things
on weekdays.

Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet, may the peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him, held my hand and said, “O Abu Huraira! Verily
Allah created heavens and the earths and whatever is between them in six days.
Then he ascended to the Throne on the seventh day. He created earth on
Saturday, and mountains on Sunday …[23]

This shows the hadith neither contradicts the Qur’an nor
explains the “day” (yawm) in the six-day creation account.

The six days mentioned in the Qur’an are different than the
seven days mentioned in this hadith. The hadith talks about a stage from the
stages of creation on the surface of the Earth until it became suitable for
life. This is supported by the fact that Qur’an says some of days (ayyam)
with Allah are equal to a thousand years and some are fifty-thousand years.
What forbids six days to be from this kind and the seven days (of hadith) to be
like our days, as it is explicit in the hadith?[24]

5. Week days- Days of completion of creation of various things

As to the creation of things on respective week days, the
hadith only tells us what object was completed on what day of the week without
having to say anything about the total span of time consumed in the process.
This is clear from the accounts of the creation of man which according to this
hadith happened on Friday.

Abu Huraira narrated:
“They said: ‘O Messenger of Allah! When was the Prophethood established for
you?’ He said: ‘While Adam was between (being) soul and body.’”[27]

This hadith actually
explains the “period of time when Adam,” the father of mankind, “was not a
thing mentioned.”[28]

And like the hadith
under discussion there are other reports about creation of Adam on Friday
narrated by Abu Huraira,[29]
Aws bin Aws[30]
and Sa’d bin ‘Ubadah.[31]

These hadith reports
suggest the creation of Adam was a process that continued for a certain period
of time exceeding forty years. Therefore, narrations about creation of Adam on
Friday can be understood to mean perfection and completion of the said process.[32]

The same may be said
of creation of rest of the things on other days mentioned in the hadith of Abu
Huraira. Regardless of the time it took for the creation of any of the
objects each was completed and perfected on the respective day of the week.

5.
Trees created before the creation of light?

The foregoing also entails the
sequence is not implied. The purpose of the hadith, it appears, is only to tell
that all the days of the week the process of creation continued. This is to
reject the idea of God resting on Saturday and the Jewish belief of Sabbath.

Moreover, the
order of mention does not necessarily imply sequence of creation except for the
creation of Adam which is categorically mentioned to be the last of all. Use of
the conjunction “wa” (and) does not imply relative order. Fakhr ad-Deen ar-Razi
(d. 606 AH) reiterated this point over and over again in his commentary. For
instance, at one point he stated:

The significance of this point
along with earlier observations is that the hadith does not imply the creation
of trees before the creation of light. It only means in the overall Creation
Plan when the creation of trees was completed it was Monday and the same in
case of light happened on a Wednesday. And as we know, every Wednesday is
followed by a Monday of the subsequent week. The purpose of the hadith is not
to describe the sequential plan of creation but only to tell us that something
was created and perfected on every day of the week regardless of the order and
intervening period between the (perfection of the) creation of those different
things.

“al-Makruh”: Opposite of the liked. Here it
means evil as the hadith further says, “And He created al-noor on Wednesday.”
Nur is goodness.[34]

As per this interpretation the
hadith would mean, “He created the trees on Monday, He created the evil on
Tuesday, He created the goodness on Wednesday,”

This understanding makes the question of trees coming to
existence before light totally irrelevant.

6. Intended purpose of the hadith

It is imperative to understand that the sayings of the
Prophet always have some point to make on the beliefs and ethics. The mention
of different facts about physical phenomenon is only for the purpose of
bringing out such a point.

“In their conduct (the prophets) did
not occupy themselves with what had no relevance for refining the soul and the
governing of the community. They did not explain the events of the atmosphere
like rain, eclipses, rings around the sun or moon, the wonders of plants and
animals, the measurement of the paths of the sun and moon, the causes of daily
events, and the stories of the prophets, kings, countries and so on, unless
they used simple words with which their audience was familiar, and that their
minds would accept if these were used to remind them of the blessings of God
and the requital of God, unless this was by way of digression into a general
discussion which is permitted in cases like this, through introducing metaphors
and similes. This was basically the case when they asked the Prophet
about the reasons for the waxing and waning of the moon, and God the Exalted
turned from that to the explanation of the benefits of that waning and waxing,
and said, "They ask you about the new moons, say they are times appointed
for the people and the pilgrimages." (Qur'an 2:189) You may see many
people whose taste is corrupted because of familiarity with these (technical)
fields, or due to other causes, so that they apply the words of the prophets
to things to which they did not refer, and God knows better.”[34-a]

Scholars have explained the intended purpose of the hadith. Abu
al-Qasim as-Suhayli (d. 581 AH) in his commentary to Ibn Hisham’s edition of
Ibn Ishaq’s work stated:

The Jews specified Saturday for they believed it is the
seventh day. Moreover, they increased in their blasphemy by saying that Allah
rested on this day -Allah is exalted above what they say! This is because to
them creation stated on Sunday and the last of the six days on which Allah
created things was Friday. Same is the stance of the Christians. They specified
Sunday because to them it was the first of the days. And the Messenger of
Allah, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, testified that both
Jews and Christians have missed the day (originally decreed to be specified in
the True Revealed Religion). He, as in Sahih Muslim, said: “Allah created Earth
on Saturday.”[35]

“In the mention of creation of Earth on Saturday is the
rejection of the Jewish belief that Allah started the creation of the universe
on Sunday, finished it on Friday and rested on Saturday (Sabbath). They say,
‘We take rest on this day as God rested.’ This from their ignorance for fatigue
can affect only the non-Eternal (i.e. it cannot affect God).”[36]

7. Answer to further objections and queries

Having positively described the meanings of the hadith let’s
now turn to answering the objections and queries about the hadith.

7.1 Objection that the hadith contradicts Qur’an

Some have raised an objection that the hadith contradicts
Qur’an for it counts seven days of creation whereas Qur’an mentions it happened
in six ‘ayyam.'

It has already been stated that the hadith neither explains
the Qur’anic ‘days’ nor contradicts that account. This is an independent
narrative aimed for a separate purpose. All this has been deliberated upon in
the foregoing.

7.2 It contradicts other hadith reports

It is also said that it contradicts another hadith report
recorded by at-Tabari which says the Creation of Earth took place on Sunday and
Monday and in which in total counts six days of creation i.e. Sunday to Friday.
Al-Tabari writes:

Now then, this being so, there is (also) a sound tradition
from the Messenger of God told us by Hannad b. al-Sari, who also said that he
read all of the hadith (to Abu Bakr)- Abu Bakr b. 'Ayyash- Abu Sa'd al-Baqqal-
'Ikrimah- Ibn Abbas: The Jews came to the Prophet and asked him about the
creation of the heavens and the earth. He said: God created the earth on
Sunday and Monday. He created the mountains and the uses they possess on
Tuesday. On Wednesday, He created trees, water, cities and the cultivated
barren land. These are four (days). He continued (citing the Qur'an): 'Say: Do
you really not believe in the One Who created the earth in two days, and set up
others like Him? That is the Lord of the worlds. He made it firmly anchored
(mountains) above it and blessed it and decreed that it contain the amount of
food it provides, (all) in four days, equally for those asking'- for those who
ask. On Thursday, He created heaven. On Friday, He created the stars, the sun,
the moon, and the angels, until three hours remained. In the first of these
three hours He created the terms (of human life), who would live and who would
die. In the second, He cast harm upon everything that is useful for mankind.
And in the third, (He created) Adam and had him dwell in Paradise. He commanded
Iblis to prostrate himself before Adam, and He drove Adam out of Paradise at
the end of the hour. When the Jews asked: What then, Muhammad? He said: 'Then
He sat straight upon the Throne.' The Jews said: You are right, if you had
finished, they said, with: Then He rested. Whereupon the Prophet got very
angry, and it was revealed: 'We have created the heavens and the earth and what
is between them in six days, and fatigue did not touch Us. Thus be patient with
what you say.'"[37]

Even though at-Tabari suggests that this narration is sound
it is actually not. A number of scholars have graded it as dubious.

The same report is given by al-Hakim in his al-Mustadrak and
Abu Shaykh in his al-Azmah. Adh-Dhahabi in his annotations to al-Mustadrak
point out the problem with its chain of narrators, “Abu Sa'd al-Baqqal: Ibn
Ma’in said, ‘his narrations are not to be written.’”[38]

The researcher of al-Asbahani’s al-‘Azmah also graded it as da’if
(weak) for the same reason.[39]

Likewise, in the critical edition of Tarikh at-Tabari it has
been counted as weak report.[40]

“The hadith with which at-Tabari sought evidence is not like
the hadith we have brought forward”[41]

This highlight of the weakness of at-Tabari’s report also
frustrates the attempts of missionary critics of Islam who use it in an attempt
to superimpose the 24 hours day interpretation of “yawm” (lit. day) to the
Qur’anic accounts of creation of heavens and the earth in six ‘days’ (ayyam).

7.3 Objection that the hadith goes against consensus

The alleged consensus, as stated by at-Tabari, is that the
creation started on Sunday while this hadith begins with the mention of the
earth on Saturday. Firstly, as mentioned earlier at least for this hadith no
sequence is established. Therefore, the point is actually irrelevant for the
purpose of this hadith.

It is also argued that while Qur’an mentions the creation of
heavens within the six days but this hadith makes no mention of the creation of
heavens. This objection again misses the point that hadith under consideration
is not expounding upon the six day creation account of the Qur’an. Also, it no
way gives an elaborate and detailed description of creation that it must
mention creation of heavens.

7.5 Creation of Earth happened in two days according to
Qur’an

Another objection can be about the creation of earth that
while Qur’an says it happened in two days[43]
this hadith says it happened on Saturday.This is, once again, answered by recounting to two primary positions taken
in the explanation above 1) the hadith is no way explaining the Qur’anic accounts
of creation, and 2) it only tells when on what weekdays the span of creation of
each of the objects mentioned was completed.

8. Conclusion

- The authenticity of this hadith
of Abu Hurairah though questioned by some has been affirmed by a number of
scholars.

- The hadith does not contradict
Qur’an nor does it define ‘yawm’ in the Qur’anic accounts of the creation.

- The hadith neither gives an
elaborate plan nor the sequence of creation of different things.Likewise, it does not give the span of
creation of any of the things mentioned. It only tells us as to what day of the
week creation of different things was completed and perfected as clear from
collective understanding of hadith reports about the creation of Adam. The same
shall apply to the creation of other things mentioned in the hadith.

- The purpose of the hadith, as it
appears, is only to reject and refute the Judeo-Christian belief of Sabbath.

-- by Waqar Akbar Cheema
.

References and Notes:

[1]
That “yawm” can mean a very long span of time is established. E.W. Lane writes:
“time absolutely, whether night or not, little or not: this is the proper
signification;”(Arabic-English Lexicon, 3064) Hans Wher says; “also:
age, era, time …” (A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic, 1110) Raghib
al-Asbahani said the same (al-Mufradat fi Gharib al-Qur’an, 894)

Lest one say it involves Fallacy of
Equivocation, it should be noted that the meaning of the word “yawm” is
unrestricted (see note 1 above) as such but once specific weekdays (e.g. yawm
al-ahad = Sunday) are mentioned it is taken in its evident restricted
sense. So the variance follows the restricted/specific and
unrestricted/unspecific usage.

[32]
I say it is about completion/perfection of the creation because some reports
about creation of Adam say on Friday the spirit was infused into him which
obviously marked the completion of his creation. (cf. Qur’an 15:28-29) Al-‘Ayni
commenting to a hadith on the virtues of Friday reported from Abu Huraira,
said: